WaterAid has worked in Ghana since 1985 and during this time has developed strong links with both policymakers and eight local partner non governmental organizations (NGOs). These partners carry out the day to day management of water, sanitation and hygiene education projects in six out of ten of the country’s regions. This work is vital as inadequate water supply and sanitation services contribute to over 70% of disease and death in Ghana, costing the country significantly in terms of healthcare and productivity.

In the eastern region of Ghana, Akuapem North and South and Yilo Krobo, districts are inhabited mostly by immigrant peasant farmers, generally suffering from poor road networks. This transportation problem is particularly acute in the rural and peripheral communities. As a result, development agencies have abandoned work in these three project districts leading to increased rates of poverty as deprived communities are isolated from opportunities to improve their conditions. Deplorable water and sanitation conditions exacerbate their poverty. People mainly rely on streams, rivers and other unsafe sources of water. This situation is compounded by open defecation and poor hygiene practices. These conditions are reflected in the growing number of cases of bilharzias, cholera, intestinal infections, and guinea worm. WaterAid Ghana expanded its rural work in 2005/2006 to address these concerns and reduce the vast coverage inequities between the urban and rural populations.

Improvements in sanitation facilities are paramount to WaterAid’s holistic approach of integrating water, sanitation, and hygiene education services. While safe water alone positively impacts the lives of the poor, achieving maximum health benefits requires all three of these crucial interventions.

All of our projects in Ghana use technologies that are appropriate to local conditions, affordable for even the poorest in society and easy to maintain.

The project focuses on safe, hand-dug wells where water is either lifted using a rope pump or a Nira handpump. The rope pump is a simple technology hand pump that has the potential of reducing the cost of installing hand pumps in Ghana by about 75 to 80 percent.

WaterAid Ghana aims to improve sanitation by assisting in the construction of Ventilated Improved Pit (VIP) Latrines and by promoting their use. VIP have a vent pipe included in the design which takes away smells and insects (flies in particular) that come in contact with feces and food. By blocking this transmission route, the likelihood of diarrhea can be greatly reduced, in combination with proper hygiene practices.

This program will take place over a period of 5 years (2006-2011). By the end of March 2007, the project will have delivered both water and sanitation to 1,500 as part of the overall goal of 100% regional coverage, while also carrying out hygiene promoti

All of WaterAid’s programs are designed to work hand-in-hand with our local partners and the community. Across WaterAid West Africa programs, the Local Millennium Development Goals Initiative (LMDGI) is being utilized to address and decentralize the national MDG’s on a tangible and local level. Encompassing six countries in the West-African sub-region: Burkino Faso, Ghana, Mali, Mauritania, Nigeria and Senegal, the initiative engages local partner NGOs as the operational implementers, in partnership with local government institutions, with the objective of motivating local stakeholders to mobilize and recognize the potential resources in the region.

WaterAid is partnering with local Government (Communes) to implement each project in accordance with the LMDGI. This approach involves local communities from the beginning of the process, fostering engagement. Working hand-in-hand with WaterAid, communities assist in:
• identifying poverty criteria and indicators used to rank the population,
• performing self-assessment of the community,
• determining the mechanisms and approaches, taking into account the local context, and
• participating in the implementation of the water and sanitation projects.

WaterAid Ghana’s hygiene promotion approach is based on three key aspects: safety of drinking water (collection, transportation, storage and handling), hand washing (before and after critical periods/events), and safe excreta disposal. Through the use of our hygiene promotion tools, SARAR and PHAST, WaterAid uses community interaction to enhance behavior change regarding the three key areas. The methods used are all based upon the communities' existing knowledge and practices and include practical demonstrations, puppet shows, hygiene promotion tiles, picture books, games, plays, posters and videos. WaterAid Ghana’s aims to promote proper hygiene practices among 1,500 people in the first year, while aiming for hygiene behavior change of 40% in the target communities by the end of the five-year period.